This blog discusses the art of writing and marketing books as an indie author. Spirit science is a big proponent and the author has written many books for both adults and children dealing with this subject matter.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

This was a troubling tale of struggle, poverty and homelessness as seen through the eyes of a writer caught up in a depression. An excellent read.It resonated with me because the writing is very similar to my own. It takes a first person telling, which offers deep insight into the protagonists state of mind.

Friday, December 24, 2010

"I'm one who firmly believes in taking what you do best and sharing it with others. In my case that's writing. I do this because I love it, and I do it to share with others. In this case, anyone who reads my books. So grab one of my novels, find a comfy chair, and immerse yourself in the worlds these books bring to you...... you can now find me on the social web at Twitter, Facebook, LibraryThing and Goodreads!"

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Imagine if you suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder. It is a mood disorder that hits those with normal mental health, causing depression at the onset of winter. The days are shorter. You wake up to darkness, and go home in darkness. Those of us that work in-doors are likely not to see the sun for stretches of a week at a time. Symptoms can range from a lack of energy, difficulty concentrating, withdrawing from friends, family, and social activities to life ending anxiety. But winter is a tough season. It is cold, grey, and dark. Even those showing no signs of S.A.D. will lock themselves away in-doors, waiting out the season, not venturing out-doors unless it is absolutely necessary.

Now imagine everyone in the world suffered from S.A.D. What kind of a world would that be?

The end of the world offers its that very scenario, trapped inside, while a nuclear winter rages. Seasonal Affective Disorder could hardly represent the angst and horror those (un)lucky few survivors would suffer. Though all of the symptoms would apply, the idea that winter may never pass, that spring would never come, and that the summer months may exist only as a memory allows us to coin a new disorder in light of the end of the world: L.A.D. - Life Affective Disorder

Life Affective Disorder would encompass all of the aforementioned symptoms, one hundred fold. Thoughts of suicide would play out on the most resolute of individuals. Those left to exist in this nightmarish realm alone would almost certainly parish by their own hand. The (un)lucky few trapped with friends or family would fare much better, but for how long? With no end in sight, and no ability to forecast an end to this dark winter, L.A.D. would be rampant in every corner of the world a survivor, or group of survivors were found. The simple comforts we’d taken for granted gone, electricity, heat, clean water and food, depression would run rampant through the population.

Currently there are many different treatments for seasonal affective disorder, including light therapy: where the sufferer is exposed to false sunlight, antidepressants: which can artificially alter your mood, cognitive-behavioral therapy: where the patient is taught to think differently about a situation to alter their mood, and hormone therapy: where melatonin is released into the system.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

The Passage shares many aspects of The Judas Syndrome , for example; main character development prior to its explanation of how the end comes, and its use of multiple characters. The end having come from a plague rather than a nuclear holocaust allowed the planet to better sustain survivors in The Passage, offering an easier "afterlife" than the demoralized planet The Judas Syndrome left its surviving population.

That being said, both surviving communities were forced to push back attacking parties, in The Passage it was the infected humans bent on sucking the blood from their human counterparts, whereas in The Judas Syndrome those that survived were left to fight one another for what remaining resources there was left.

Both books offer up the intense anxiety survivors would experience after an Apocalypse of some design occurred, but the anxiety The Judas Syndrome creates is immediate whereas The Passage jumps ahead 100 years after the virals have already decimated the population. This broke up the anxiety (and the story) for me, and left me feeling like one book had ended while another was starting. Not a bad thing, but an interruption into a world I was just getting comfortable with.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Rebirth, the second book in the popular Apocalyptic fiction series, The Judas Syndrome, is now available exclusively through the author's website. Pick up where you left off, but before you do, read two excerpts from Rebirth - found here.

Doomsday links

Apocalyptic Novel

PostApoc.net

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About Me

First of all, you can't pronounce my last name, so don't waste your time there. Many have tried, they have all failed.

I've managed the marketing departments of several materials handling manufacturing companies and continue to do so today with great zeal! I enjoy bringing marketing into the world of manufacturing and leading the way with social and web technologies to offer a better footing in the online market.

I am also an author - With an interest in the paranormal as well as science, I've found my niche in developing stories which both instill a sense of wonder in the spiritual world while often referencing science and its hard fought principles as the paranormal’s greatest advocate. This mixing of strange bedfellows excites and encourages me, researching both seemingly opposing worlds, finding their common bonds, stitching them together and telling a unique tale.

Born in Toronto, Ontario, I earned my diploma in Interpretive Illustration and began a career in the field while educating myself on the art of writing. I have authored several books and am self-published and self-marketed. I now offer my experience in traditional and on-line marketing to businesses and authors alike..